* women in sport made up just nine per cent of all sports coverage in Australian television news and current affairs and seven per cent of other sport programming * television news reports on female sport had the lowest average duration of all the types of sport news analysed; with reports on male sport having an average duration of 30 seconds longer than reports on female sport * female athletes generally need to win in order to receive media coverage, whereas male athletes tend to receive coverage regardless of their success * the gender stereotyping in press and television coverage of female athletes was minimal, with reporting focussed on the performances and results rather than their looks, sexuality or emotions.

The Australian Government through the ASC recognises that one of the major barriers facing womenâ€™s participation in sport is getting women seen, heard and supported in the media. That is why the Government is investing in raising the profile of women's sport in Australia by providing:

* $32 million over 4 years to the Football Federation Australia, which includes supporting a televised Westfield Womenâ€™s League, * $2.4 million to support the Trans-Tasman netball competition, including funding to support and promote free-to-air television coverage of the ANZ Netball Championships; and * $100,000 to support the 5th IWG International Conference on Women and Sport.

Without supporting evidence, I'd suggest that most of the elite sports have greater male participation. There's a few exceptions such as tennis, and then coverage mainly seems to swing on Venus and Serenas latest sartorial innovations, more than their game. Of course, if "Our Sam" gets to the finals of a major...

Methinks the bias in coverage is down to the hoary ol' bastiges who run the media not having the stones to take a risk on something that may or may not rate sufficiently to gain advertising minutes. Bring Netty back to free to air you mongrels!

...whatever the road rules, self-preservation is the absolute priority for a cyclist when mixing it with motorised traffic.London Boy 29/12/2011

Half the population (roughly) are women. The media show programs that get viewer numbers - that's what sells their advertising and pays their bills. If you could get half the population watching a women's sporting event, there'd be no shortage of advertisers, sponsors and TV coverage.

My hunch is that the problem for women's sports is that women don't want to watch it. The majority of women aren't interested in watching any gladitorial event - the only competitive stuff that really grabs their interest is Master Chef.

Trying to appeal to baser male instincts (a la Lingerie League or Beach Volleyball) is not the way to go. You've got to find a way to get women interested in sporting competition and watching it.

This could be difficult if this evolutionary anthropologists explanation is right:

To some evolutionary anthropologists, it's only natural that women would show less interest in sports. ''Both sexes like the exercise and challenge of sports, but for men it's also a basic display behavior for impressing and winning a mate,'' said Helen Fisher, an anthropologist at Rutgers University.

But don't women need the discipline and teamwork taught on the playing fields, too? ''You don't need football to learn how to succeed in school or the office,'' Dr. Fisher said. ''You don't surround a computer and tackle it. You need the ability to read and discuss and compromise -- the kind of skills that women were developing around the campfire while men were off fighting and chasing animals.''

It's been more than a generation since the Female Eunuch and Womens Lib started trying to change this state of affairs. I've noticed increasing numbers of (younger) women drivers are acting aggressively on the road over the last decade or so. It could possibly be a a harbinger indicating that women are increasingly less content with "keeping campfires burning" behavior. However I'm not sure yet that driving aggressively is mate-attracting behavior. Many males feel threatened by strong and aggressive women (drivers or sportswomen), and that further detracts from women's participation and viewing habits.

The situation for womens sporting might change for the better - but it's a long and slow process to change what interests women viewers.

Cheers

WombatK

Somebody has to do something, and it's just incredibly pathetic that it has to be us -Jerry Garcia

'CAN you think of any strategies to increase the coverage for women's sport?" This request appeared in my inbox last week.

Yes, ladies, I can. But you might not want to hear them.

My daughter is now a scrappy little wing-defence, just like her mum was back in the old days.

The last time I played netball was in the '70s with a skanky surfie chick outfit from Torquay. We named our team "Shane", wore Hawaiian-print skirts and puka shell necklaces and our supporters drove Sandman panel vans.

We made the grand final, but I think we were flogged by some Christians. (I was the only brunette on our side.)

Our sportswomen are kicking, belting, bouncing it out of the park at the moment. The Matildas, Sam Stosur, the Opals all are champs on the world stage.

Our incredible surfing goddesses have always floated our 3-fin thrusters, from Pam Burridge to Layne Beachley and now Stephanie Gilmore. But it's a perennial whinge from the rest of the gals: "Why doesn't anyone want to watch us?"

Here's a clue.

A few weeks ago the federal Sports Minister, Kate Ellis, released a report from the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) saying she was pleased the coverage of women's sport was now "properly" focused on performance and results. The report lauded the fact that women's "looks, sexuality and emotions" had been sidelined.

But, still, there was the dilemma of why women's sport gets less than 10 per cent of media sports coverage. Hmmm ... what could it be?

Can I state the obvious? If you take out "looks, sexuality and emotions", you ain't got sport. You haven't even got chess!

I rang my good friend Kerri Pottharst, Olympic gold medal-winner in beach volleyball in 2000, and asked her the big one.

"Did you check out Serena Williams' nude-coloured undies in the French Open?" She laughed: "How could you not?"

And how did she feel back then when she was on the sand at Bondi in her green and gold knickers? She must have known she was being perved on.

"If it brought them to the beach, I didn't mind, because I knew that within 10 minutes they would be hooked on the sport."

Then Kerri and I got down to the serious stuff. Footballers' bums.

"The rugby league uniforms are getting tighter and tighter, and the Swannies wear those little footy shorts. Who's complaining?" she asked. Not me, darls.

Despite what the ASC has to say, I reckon we are compelled to watch sex, glamour and scrag-fights. And if it's on the sporting field? What an intoxicating witches' brew!

Forget the red carpet. Who remembers the brawl between Jana Pittman and Tamsyn Lewis in the 400m run? You're evil. You're a bitch. You're a bikini-babe. You're a role model to look down to.

Then, just as it was getting interesting, Jana said she thought a mediator should be brought in to "foster harmony". Zzzzzz.

Apparently, Jana and Tamsyn hated being cast as aggressors and loathed the media coverage of their rivalry. But why can't we accept that women can be sexy, aggressive and competitive in the ring and then go home, get into their fluffy pink PJs and play nice?

Why can't women be nurturing wives and mothers and then, like the rest of animal kingdom (ie, footballers) indulge in a bit of ritual savagery? Look at your lioness; she kills and gives birth.

I think Kerri nailed it when she said that there's a desperate need for more women in the boardroom.

There's still a prejudice from big corporate sponsors (mostly blokes) that sportswomen have to be so nice they rot your teeth. (So many retired female sports stars end up in ads for toothpaste, laundry detergent and any amount of low-fat crapola, usually surrounded by nice blonde children.)

I can just hear the boardroom blowhards in the corporate lounge at the Bledisloe Cup: "We're sponsoring sport for the ladeez! We have a guarantee there will be no beauty, sex or emotion. OOOOH! YESSS! EYE-GOUGE! KILL HIM!"

I'm not saying women have to ape the worst of male behaviour, but I do think the ASC should be drug-tested for Valium. If no one wants to watch women's sport, why shouldn't they take some cues from the blokes?

Here are my strategies:

Sportsmen take their wives and girlfriends (WAGS) out on a big night. Likewise, sportswomen should show off their husbands and handbags (HAHS). The boys could twirl in tight pants and muscle shirts and then pout when their Aston Martin gets nicked. They should be photographed getting legless on bubbly and ignoring their partners out on the field.

Australian sportswomen need more nicknames. They're good for business. We've had "The Shark", "Plugger", "Bozo", "Blocker", "Crackers", "Dizzy" and the "Marrickville Mauler". We need some for the gals. How about "The Flying Tampon", "The Headmistress", "Tummy Tuck", "Gladwrap", "Botox", "Varicose" and the "Newtown Nagger".

The gals need to go the biff. Not the real stuff, of course. But like Jarryd Hayne's headbutt or Billy Slater's rabbit chop, just for theatrical effect. Stuff youse won't get pinged for or nuthink. Or they could be like soccer players, trip over thin air and whine like babies.

Wendy Harmer and Angela Catterns can be heard on "It's News to Me" on ABC Newsradio.

Frankly I love the media and I love advertisment, its one of the most amazing tools we have, I think we should use the sex appeal of women's in sport to get more coverage.

People harp on about the discrimination of it all, but at the end of the day it means money... it means dollars in business, which is powerful.

Its no really discrimination if you know what your doing, looks, sexuality and emotions make sport it makes life.

Its like the Liz Hatch photo shoot for maximum... what women in their right mind doesn't want to look that awesome? Who doesn't want to look at that... you gotta have problems if you don't want to look at that... hell there's men out there who'd like to have a set that good

I say we use sex as much as possible to get people interested... we're only exploiting men, if your not smart enough to teach your kids the difference between love and exploitation then stop polluting the gene pool with filth.

I don't mind perving, but not if the sex appeal is the only thing they've got going. Looks without talent is for the catwalk, not the sporting arena.

You obviously dont understand fashion and what it takes to walk on a catwalk.

As for 'perving' Im so sick of men that are so obvious about it, especially married ones, you got married for a reason go look at that, I don't sit at cafes and yell at men going past about how hot they are and I don't drool all over my attractive male friends either.

If you have to look at something else other than your wife... get a divorce

Umm you seem to have conflicting views Missy. Not saying it's bad, you're quite entitled to have an opinion about anything you want, just saying they seem to be conflicting.

You post that you think it's good that girls like Liz Hatch do sexy photo shoots as it gets people interested (ok mainly guys...) and promotes women in sport. Not a very politically correct view to have these days (if a bloke said it he would probably stoned to death by a bunch of feminists!) but you can get away with it because your a girl. Again, not saying it's bad (I'm all for it but I might be biased...) just interesting you have this view.

But then in the next post you say you don't like guys perving, especially the married ones. It doesn't hurt to look at the menu just because you are on a diet, just as long as you eat at home! Women should take it as a compliment that men think they're attractive.

Last edited by Ross on Mon Jun 14, 2010 4:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I do take it as a compliment when someone says to me, "You look great."

But I don't take it as a compliment when a man looks at me and comments in an innaprorpiate way, and... !! BAN ME NOW FOR SWEARING !!... how do I describe this. There's men out there who will look you up and down and make you feel like a piece of !! BAN ME NOW FOR SWEARING !! and worthless, and they go out of their way to look at you like that, and it makes you feel dirty.... I had a friend look at me the other day and he looked me up from top to bottom and Ive never felt so disgusting and dirty in my life, I felt violated.

Sex in advertising is here to stay, its a reality, but I think a little bit of politness wouldn't go astray, so whilst I'm saying great work Liz Hatch, I'm also saying let be mindful of how we communicate what we like.

I'm trying to say, look descreetly and be mindful of how you comment.

Society will say that what I say is politically incorrect, but society still buys the product, marketing gurus will tell you that I'm right and they'll keep marketing in this way... feminism needs to be realistic.

I'm happy to have any man look at me and say I look great, but too look at me as though I'm meat and trash from a gutter... there's something wrong with that.

Nicely summed up missy. That's definitely how most of the girls I know would feel, they like to look nice, but hate the piece-of-meat feeling.TV and internet has a lot to answer for, where men can shamelessly ogle sexy females up and down with nobody looking. It's too easy to do the same out in public, only then it's obvious to people you're mentally masturbating over someone. Hope I don't sound too Armish here, cos I do love the olympic beach volleyball... Sexy advertising I guess will always work, but I think guys can be more mindful of how they respond to it.

Missy24 wrote:I'm happy to have any man look at me and say I look great, but too look at me as though I'm meat and trash from a gutter... there's something wrong with that.

Does that make sense?

Not to this man. I agree there is something wrong with someone looking at you as though you were trash. But it's difficult for me to agree the you look great remarks are appropriate.

The dividing line between a look or remark you appreciate and one you don't is just so subjective that any man who begins to objectify a women in either way is running a serious risk of having his intention or attention misinterpreted. While you don't put yourself in this category, many women will appreciate a flattering "you look great" from a man who is attractive to them, but find it objectionable from one who is not; some women even find it demeaning when it comes from a man who is way too attractive for them (i.e. out of their league).

Few men are ever the victims of being looked at "as though I'm meat and trash from a gutter", so this leaves many clueless of how to avoid doing it to a woman or how close to the borderline their behavior might be. It's a dangerous slippery slope from the possibly welcomed flattering remark, and the look or comment that is unwelcome or hurtful. What to one person could be a compliment could be harassment to another. Complimenting one woman and not another can also be hurtful, and still others can object to the office womaniser who compliments everything in a skirt. So in my workplace, we are cautioned against it. The safest approach for men is to learn to not objectify women - whether it be in flattering or unflattering ways.

Using sex to promote womens sport is not going to help with that. It encourages the objectification of women, and the kind of behavior that you will object to when it comes from the wrong quarters or goes beyond your comfort zone. I'd rather see womens sport promoted for the values, disciplines and skills it equips them with.

WombatK

Somebody has to do something, and it's just incredibly pathetic that it has to be us -Jerry Garcia

Good discussion - I agree WombatK, when the sport is about other values - and not the sport, then the other values are what makes it attractive - for a women training half her life to enter competition and then the actual value of her participation is not her skill, then it would be a different kettle of fish compared with the mens competition. I think tennis is a great example - sure some women integrate the sex appeal into their image, though without their skill, they are nowhere.

While I am certain that some womens comps can work and grab attention using sex appeal - the marketeers will do this anyway - I think there are other ways. If I was responsible, I would look at other supports in which the womens comp has the same popularity as the mens - just have to think of the examples, tennis (as mentioned), hocky, ice skating, swimming & diving.

I have the feeling womens cycling is growing - though to start to come close to mens, it will need years.

I do take it as a compliment when someone says to me, "You look great."

But I don't take it as a compliment when a man looks at me and comments in an innaprorpiate way, and... s***... how do I describe this. There's men out there who will look you up and down and make you feel like a piece of s*** and worthless, and they go out of their way to look at you like that, and it makes you feel dirty.... I had a friend look at me the other day and he looked me up from top to bottom and Ive never felt so disgusting and dirty in my life, I felt violated.

Sex in advertising is here to stay, its a reality, but I think a little bit of politness wouldn't go astray, so whilst I'm saying great work Liz Hatch, I'm also saying let be mindful of how we communicate what we like.

I'm trying to say, look descreetly and be mindful of how you comment.

Society will say that what I say is politically incorrect, but society still buys the product, marketing gurus will tell you that I'm right and they'll keep marketing in this way... feminism needs to be realistic.

I'm happy to have any man look at me and say I look great, but too look at me as though I'm meat and trash from a gutter... there's something wrong with that.

I don't mind perving, but not if the sex appeal is the only thing they've got going. Looks without talent is for the catwalk, not the sporting arena.

You obviously dont understand fashion and what it takes to walk on a catwalk.

As for 'perving' Im so sick of men that are so obvious about it, especially married ones, you got married for a reason go look at that, I don't sit at cafes and yell at men going past about how hot they are and I don't drool all over my attractive male friends either.

If you have to look at something else other than your wife... get a divorce

You will never stop a man at 'admiring' other women - married or not. Any woman (or man) who expects their partner to never notice a member of the opposite sex that grabs their eye is being very unrealistic, and will probably be single for a fair while imo.

I do take it as a compliment when someone says to me, "You look great."

But I don't take it as a compliment when a man looks at me and comments in an innaprorpiate way, and... s***... how do I describe this. There's men out there who will look you up and down and make you feel like a piece of s*** and worthless, and they go out of their way to look at you like that, and it makes you feel dirty.... I had a friend look at me the other day and he looked me up from top to bottom and Ive never felt so disgusting and dirty in my life, I felt violated.

Sex in advertising is here to stay, its a reality, but I think a little bit of politness wouldn't go astray, so whilst I'm saying great work Liz Hatch, I'm also saying let be mindful of how we communicate what we like.

I'm trying to say, look descreetly and be mindful of how you comment.

Society will say that what I say is politically incorrect, but society still buys the product, marketing gurus will tell you that I'm right and they'll keep marketing in this way... feminism needs to be realistic.

I'm happy to have any man look at me and say I look great, but too look at me as though I'm meat and trash from a gutter... there's something wrong with that.

I don't mind perving, but not if the sex appeal is the only thing they've got going. Looks without talent is for the catwalk, not the sporting arena.

You obviously dont understand fashion and what it takes to walk on a catwalk.

As for 'perving' Im so sick of men that are so obvious about it, especially married ones, you got married for a reason go look at that, I don't sit at cafes and yell at men going past about how hot they are and I don't drool all over my attractive male friends either.

If you have to look at something else other than your wife... get a divorce

You will never stop a man at 'admiring' other women - married or not. Any woman (or man) who expects their partner to never notice a member of the opposite sex that grabs their eye is being very unrealistic, and will probably be single for a fair while imo.

I'm not saying don't admire another women, I'm saying that manners should be deployed.

Don't make the assumption that every women wants to be married/partnered

Missy24 wrote:I'm not saying don't admire another women, I'm saying that manners should be deployed.

Don't make the assumption that every women wants to be married/partnered

Maybe lower you expectations of other people so you wont be constantly dissapointed - does someone else boyfriend/husband/wife/girlfriened looking at someone else bother you that much that you have to have a major whinge about it in several threads.

No not every woman (or man) wants to be partnered - what Im saying is if/when you ever decide you want to be partnered, be prepared to change you thinking as you are being unrealistic to think your partner would never look at anyone else. Even as a single person people will get sick of you preaching about attached people looking at other people (even in magazines). I log on here to read about mainly bicycle related stuff.

Who is online

About the Australian Cycling Forums

The largest cycling discussion forum in Australia for all things bike; from new riders to seasoned bike nuts, the Australian Cycling Forums are a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.